The Kirkus Prize is one of the richest literary awards in the world, with a prize of $50,000 bestowed annually to authors of fiction, nonfiction and young readers’ literature. It was created to celebrate the 81 years of discerning, thoughtful criticism Kirkus Reviews has contributed to both the publishing industry and readers at large. Books that earned the Kirkus Star with publication dates between November 1, 2014, and October 31, 2015 (see FAQ for exceptions), are automatically nominated for the 2015 Kirkus Prize, and the winners will be selected on October 15, 2015, by an esteemed panel composed of nationally respected writers and highly regarded booksellers, librarians and Kirkus critics.

Javier Marías was born in Madrid, Spain, in 1951, into a very literary family. He earned his first paycheck at age twenty translating "Dracula" scripts into Spanish for his uncle, the movie director Jesús Franco. Today his own work is translated into thir

"Not the easiest reading, but should find its fans among intrepid English-speakers undaunted by works in translation."

Dense, acrobatic stream-of-consciousness exploring the political and personal ramifications of the violation of a confidence, by Spanish novelist Marias (The Man of Feeling, 2003, etc.).
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"And—despite a certain donnish smugness that tends to surface at even Marias's most outrageously melodramatic moments—a surprisingly entertaining book."

The densely tangled prose and meditative intensity that made Spanish author Marias's All Souls and A Heart So White (both 1996) memorable (if demanding) reading experiences is put to decidedly different uses in this clever and amusing 1998 novel.
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"All the same, Mar°as's is a world-class talent, one always worth reading."

Another intriguing psychodrama of sex, guilt, and social satire from the prize-winning Spanish author whose fiction in English translation includes All Souls and A Heart So White (both 1996).
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"The flawed, truncated nature of all human contact and efforts to reach it has rarely been given such remorseless stress."

A harrowing drama of family secrets and their deepening resonance throughout several involved lives, by an accomplished European author whose All Souls (not reviewed) appeared in English translation in 1993.
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